Amargosa Desert Hydrographic Basin 14-230
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STATE OF NEVADA DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES JASON KING, P.E. STATE ENGINEER AMARGOSA DESERT HYDROGRAPHIC BASIN 14-230 GROUNDWATER PUMPAGE INVENTORY WATER YEAR 2015 Field Investigated by: Tracy Geter Report Prepared by: Tracy Geter TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................... 1 HYDROGRAPHIC BASIN SUMMARY ................................................................................... 2 PURPOSE AND SCOPE .............................................................................................................. 3 DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA .................................................................................. 3 GROUNDWATER LEVELS ....................................................................................................... 3 METHODS TO ESTIMATE PUMPAGE .................................................................................. 4 PUMPAGE BY MANNER OF USE ........................................................................................... 5 TABLES ......................................................................................................................................... 6 FIGURES ....................................................................................................................................... 7 APPENDIX A. AMARGOSA DESERT 2015 GROUNDWATER PUMPAGE BY APPLICATION NUMBER ............................................................................................ 11 APPENDIX B. AMARGOSA DESERT 2015 GROUNDWATER PUMPAGE FIELD NOTES ............................................................................................................................. 36 LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1. Amargosa Desert historical pumpage (acre-feet) by water year. ...................................... 6 LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1. Location map for Amargosa Desert (Hydrographic Basin 14-230). ............................... 7 Figure 2. Amargosa Desert water level measurement sites. Base imagery is standard satellite imagery; National Agricultural Imagery Program data are incomplete in this location. .... 8 Figure 3. Amargosa Desert historical pumpage by manner of use. ................................................ 9 Figure 4. Percentage of 2015 groundwater pumpage by manner of use. ........................................ 9 Figure 5. 2015 groundwater pumpage appropriations versus actual pumpage. ............................ 10 i ABSTRACT This inventory represents the status and usage of all permitted, certificated and claims of vested right groundwater rights located within Amargosa Desert, Hydrographic Basin 14-230, for water year 2015 (October 1, 2014 through September 30, 2015). Also included for summary purposes are graphs and data associated with this use, and yearly totals of historical groundwater use from 2000 through 2015 by manner of use. The data presented are valid for the time period of this report, and may vary from previously published figures as water rights within the basin are subject to administrative action, such as certification, cancellation, forfeiture, or withdrawal on a continual basis. For water year 2015, the permitted, certificated and claims of vested right groundwater rights totaled 26,109 acre-feet, with estimated pumpage of approximately 16,192 acre-feet. Pumping by irrigation wells is the largest manner of use within the basin with groundwater rights totaling 20,781 acre-feet and pumpage of 13,259 acre-feet. The second largest manner of use was commercial and industrial, with groundwater rights totaling 2,210 acre-feet and pumpage of 1,907 acre-feet. 1 HYDROGRAPHIC BASIN SUMMARY HYDROGRAPHIC BASIN NUMBER 230, REGION 14 HYDROGRAPHIC BASIN NAME AMARGOSA DESERT COUNTIES NYE MAJOR COMMUNITIES BEATTY, LATHROP WELLS DESIGNATED YES DENIALS BASED UPON WATER AVAILABILITY IRRIGATION, MUNICIPAL, QUASI-MUNICIPAL GROUNDWATER LEVEL MEASUREMENTS NDWR, USGS, NYE COUNTY PUMPAGE INVENTORY, ACRE-FEET IN 2015 16,1921 STATE ENGINEER’S ORDERS NO. 293 – DESIGNATION DATE: SEPTEMBER 20, 1965 NO. 296 – RESCINDED DESIGNATION DATE: JANUARY 21, 1966 NO. 724 – DESIGNATION (PORTION) DATE: MAY 14, 1979 NO. 1197 – DESIGNATION DATE: NOVEMBER 4, 2008 COMMITTED GROUNDWATER RESOURCE: 26,109 ACRE-FEET DATE: JULY 2015 COMMERCIAL……….1,810 DOMESTIC……….21 INDUSTRIAL……….400 IRRIGATION……….20,781 MINING & MILLING……….1,919 MUNICIPAL……….432 QUASI-MUNICIPAL…737 WILDLIFE……….9 NOTE: Committed groundwater resource data are accurate for July 2015. Manner of use category totals vary over time, as rights are not necessarily static. Rights may be subject to change applications, certification, withdrawals, forfeiture and cancellations; each of these circumstances could impact the duty, diversion rate and acreage associated with a given right. The value associated with each manner of use category does not include those portions that have been relinquished in support of domestic wells. 1 Includes pumpage by exempt domestic wells, as defined by NRS 534.013. The domestic use estimate is based upon a count of the total domestic wells in the basin multiplied by 0.5 acre-foot per annum. The number of domestic wells in the basin, estimated by a query of the Nevada Division of Water Resources Well Log Database, is approximately 502. 2 PURPOSE AND SCOPE The purpose of this report is to inventory all of the groundwater resources allocated and described by the Office of the State Engineer, Nevada Division of Water Resources (NDWR), and to estimate the amount of groundwater pumped within the Amargosa Desert Hydrographic Basin (14-230), for the time period beginning October 1, 2014 and ending September 30, 2015 (hereafter referred to as water year 2015). This report estimates the amount of groundwater pumped under the permits and certificates issued by the State Engineer, claims of vested right, as well as the amount pumped by exempt domestic wells within the basin. DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA Amargosa Desert is bounded to the north by Bare Mountain and the Bullfrog Hills. The Specter Range borders the northeast side of the basin. The Last Chance Range and northwest end of the Spring Mountains border the basin to the east. The Funeral Mountains are located to the southwest of the basin. The north and northeast portion of the Amargosa Desert Basin is surrounded by tributary basins to the north and northeast (Oasis Valley, Crater Flat, Fortymile Canyon – Jackass Flats Subarea, Rock Valley, and Mercury Valley). The adjacent Nevada hydrographic basins are: Pahrump Valley (10-162) and Indian Springs Valley (10-161) to the east; Sarcobatus Flat (10-146) to the northwest; and Mercury Valley (14-225), Rock Valley (14- 226), Fortymile Canyon - Jackass Flats Subarea (14-227A), Crater Flat (14-229), and Oasis Valley (14-228) to the north (see Figure 1). The exterior boundary of the Amargosa Desert Hydrographic Basin is as described by Designation Order 293 issued on September 20, 1965, Rescinded Designation Order 296 issued on January 21, 1966, Designation Order (Portion) issued on May 19, 1979, and Designation Order 1197 issued on November 4, 2008. Valley elevations range from 6,700 feet above mean sea level at the highest point to about 2,650 feet at the lowest point. GROUNDWATER LEVELS Depths to groundwater in Amargosa Desert have been measured by the Nevada Division of Water Resources consistently since the early 1950's. The following are the measurement site names and links to their data (refer to Figure 2 for monitoring well locations): 230 S15 E49 09CADA1 230 S15 E49 25DBCA1 230 S15 E50 29BADB1 230 S16 E48 14BAAA1 230 S16 E48 36DDDA1 230 S16 E49 14BB 1 230 S16 E49 19DA 1 230 S16 E49 22BBAA1 230 S16 E49 27BBAA1 230 S16 E50 28CDBA1 230 S16 E50 29DDAD1 230 S17 E48 01AB 1 230 S17 E49 04AA 1 230 S17 E49 04DCCC1 230 S17 E49 09 1 230 S17 E49 09DBBB1 230 S17 E49 10CBCB1 230 S17 E49 10DBBA1 230 S17 E49 12DDDA1 230 S17 E49 15BBBB1 230 S17 E49 15BC 2 230 S17 E49 15CAAA1 Groundwater level data have also been collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and may be accessed through their website at http://nevada.usgs.gov/. 3 METHODS TO ESTIMATE PUMPAGE One of the purposes of this report is to estimate the amount of groundwater pumped under vested claims, permits and certificates issued by the State Engineer, as well as the amount pumped by the exempt domestic wells in the valley. The following methods were used to arrive at the estimated use: Where totalizing meters were in place, meter readings were taken and compared with previous data (if available). Where meters were not in place and the use was irrigation, pumpage was estimated by multiplying the number of hours the well was operated during the past year (determined from an hour meter reading or asking the water user) by the certificated diversion rate. Where there were no flow meters or other reliable options for estimating pumpage and the use was irrigation, pumpage was estimated by dividing the Net Irrigation Water Requirement (NIWR) for the crop grown by the efficiency of the irrigation method used, then multiplying by the number of acres irrigated. Irrigation efficiencies associated with three types of irrigation methods are: pivot at 85%; wheel line or other hand moved sprinklers at 75%; and flood at 60%. The pumpage amount estimated by this method was limited by the duty of the permit. For places where the groundwater rights were supplemental to surface water, groundwater use was estimated